Bessie Hall
| Elizabeth (Bessie) Pritchard Hall | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born | 7 April 1849 Granville Beach, Nova Scotia, Canada |
| Died | June 30, 1930 (aged 81) Brookline, Mass., United States |
| Resting place | Stoney Beach Cemetery, Granville Beach, Nova Scotia |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Known for | Seafaring skills and courage |
Elizabeth (Bessie) Pritchard Hall (1849 – 1930) was a seafaring woman from Granville Beach, Nova Scotia. She is notable for taking command of a fever-ridden ship in 1870 and safely navigating it through storms from Florida to Liverpool, England.
Elizabeth Hall, usually known as Bessie Hall, was born in Granville Beach (Lower Granville), Nova Scotia on 7 April 1849, the daughter of Captain Joseph Hall and Priscilla (Cushing) Hall. According to an 1871 deed, Captain Hall and his wife Pricilla purchased a home in Granville Beach (Lower Granville) from the Hon. James W. Johnson. The deed states that Captain Hall had been residing there for several years, likely with his daughter Bessie. This house still exists as a private residence. The Halls were a well-known family of shipbuilders and ship captains in Annapolis County, Nova Scotia. Bessie began to go to sea when she was 17, joining her father on deep sea voyages in the family’s large square rigged sailing vessels. She showed great interest in navigation. Her father taught her Celestial navigation and ship handling as she assisted him in plotting voyages. In 1883, Captain Joseph Hall sold his Granville Beach house after building a new one in Granville Ferry c.1881. This house still exists and is now a Bed and Breakfast known as “The Seafaring Maiden”, named after Captain Hall’s famous daughter.
In 1870, Bessie Hall and her father arrived in New Orleans from Liverpool aboard the 1444-ton ship Rothesay to load a cargo of cotton. The cargo was delayed for two months due to financial problems with the shipper, causing a considerable number of the crew to desert and sign on to other vessels. To make up for the long delay, Capt. Hall decided to risk sailing shorthanded. He left New Orleans on March 24, 1870, with a crew of six sailors, plus the first mate, a cook, an elderly carpenter – and Bessie.
Four days into the voyage, the First Mate fell ill with smallpox and was quarantined to his cabin. Capt. Hall kept the small pox secret to avoid panic. However on April 2, Capt. Hall also came down with smallpox, just as the ship rounded the tip of Florida and encountered mounting squalls as it entered the Gulf Stream. Capt. Hall had just enough energy to direct the crew in reducing sail to storm canvas, a minimum set of strong lower sails, before he collapsed with fever and was taken below. He told Bessie she would have to take command with the carpenter as first mate.
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